Forests are critical to the survival of every living thing on earth. They’re a source of air, water, shelter and medicine. Forests are also our best defense against climate change.
Yet, every year, humans destroy as much forestland as the entire country of Panama. Deforestation fuels a triple whammy of global warming that generates 25 percent of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions worldwide: the loss of GHG-absorbing trees, the release of stored carbon when trees are felled or burned and the emissions caused by the conventional farms that often replace forests. This cycle of destruction threatens biodiversity, global food security and the livelihoods of 50 million people around the world.
